ECONOMICS TRUST FUND: Legislation before county commissioners this week would create a trust fund so that a county council on economic acceleration could accept donations, enabling the council to “coordinate projects, events, and conferences.” The legislation sponsored by Commissioner Natalie Milian Orbis would aid the Dr. Antonio Jorge Social and Economic Development Council, which was established in 2002 to recommend policies and measures to reactivate the county’s economy with a special focus on the low-income population. The council is also supposed to coordinate efforts to conceptualize and implement “a long-run strategy for the acceleration of the social and economic development of Miami-Dade County,” the legislation says.
UM STUDENT HOUSING: Ocean Bank has provided $132 million to affiliates of The TREO Group LLC for the student-oriented housing VOX I and VOX II near the main campus of the University of Miami. The two buildings have 262 apartments with a total of 726 beds. The buildings have two rooftop terraces, pools, outdoor summer kitchen, five fitness areas and more than 20 study lounges at 7025 and 7175 SW 59th Ave., including 15,682 square feet of retail.
SUIT ON PRISON HEAT: A federal judge has certified as a class action a lawsuit alleging that Florida has violated inmates’ rights because of hot conditions at a prison in Miami-Dade County. U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams last week approved a class action in the suit filed last year by attorneys for three inmates at Dade Correctional Institution. The lawsuit includes claims under the U.S. Constitution’s 8th Amendment, the Americans with Disabilities Act and a disabilities-related law known as the Rehabilitation Act. The 8th Amendment bars cruel and unusual punishment. The judge’s order certified a class that includes all current or future inmates at the prison. Dade Correctional does not have air conditioning in prisoner dormitories, and the lawsuit alleges it also does not have proper ventilation. The lawsuit contends the situation has resulted in excessive heat that, in part, can harm inmates with health conditions such as hypertension.
GRANNY FLATS RETURN: After the House and Senate could not agree on the issue this year, lawmakers during the 2026 legislative session could again consider a proposal to require local governments to allow what are known as “granny flats” or “carriage houses” in single-family residential areas. Sen. Don Gaetz filed a housing bill that includes a granny-flats proposal.
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